Method of making metallic railway sleepers



Nov. 28, 1933. T. BucHi-loLz l 1,936,824

METHOD 0F MKING' METALLIC RAILWAY SLEEPERS Original Filed Aug. 21. 1929 4 Sheets-Sheet l In ven/0r.

7 @uchho/g T. BUCHHOLZ Nov. 28, 1933.

METHOD OF MAKING METALLIC RAILWAY SLEEPERS original Filed Aug. 21, 1929 4 Sheetsshee 2 Nov. 28, 1933. T. BUcHHoLz 1,935,824

METHOD OF MAKING METALLIC RAILWAY SLEEPERS Original Filed Aug. 2l, 1929 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 hlm ACA

.fm/anfora '7 @Mekka/3 NOV. 28, T BUCHHOLZ METHOD OF MAKING METALLIC RAILWAY SLEEPERS Original Filed Aug. 21, 1929 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 7 @Mekka/3 A17/fr.

Patented Nov. 28, 1933 UNITED STATES METHOD OF MAKING RIETALLIC YRIAILWAY I SLEEPERS Theodor Buchholz, Berlin-Dahlem, Germamg'assignor to American GE 0 Company, New

York, N. Y.

Application August 21, 1929, Serial No. 387,448,

and September 27, 1933 in Germany November 20, 1928.v Renewed It has hitherto not been possible to roll railway ties or sleepers having rail guiding ribs longitudinally, owing to the ribs being too high, as it is impossible to run a bar having a repeatedly varying cross section several times .through the passes. The separate recurring `projections would otherwise not coincide with the grooves in the rolls.

According to the present invention the rail-v way ties or sleepers are to be cogged downl in long bars longitudinally, in the first instance only with cogged down projections. From these bars-sepiarate pieces are vcut off and these pieces are thereupon further treated in a special manner, :for instance in rolls having suitable grooves for the ribs. Such short lengths, with only two changes of cross-section, even when run through repeatedly can adapt themselves well to the passes of grooved rolls. The constrictions in the section produced in rolling section bars having a varying cross section are equalized when finishrolling or forging the sleeper. l

The requisite ribs may alternatively be formed from the rough-rolled swells orprojections by upsetting the cross section of the sleeper; or enlargements formed by upsetting may be reduced to the desired rib shape by pressing or the like. Simultaneously with the finish-pressing of the ribs the recesses to be formed in them may be completely or partially rough-pressed.

The undercut recesses may also be formed by drifting or by milling.

For the purpose of prolonging the life of the sleeper, the top of the sleeper may be reinforced at and in the vicinity of the rail seat.

The method according to the invention is illus-V trated in the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. 1 is a cross section on the line I-I in Fig. 2, through a rolled bar with cogged down swells; and

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section through the rolled bar.

Fig. 3 shows in cross section on the line III-III in Fig. 4, and

Fig. 4 shows in longitudinal section a sleeper length cut oi from the rolled bar shown inFigs. 1 and 2, ready for further rolling in the grooved rolls.

Fig. 5 is a cross section through the nished rail tie or sleeper on the line V-V in Fig. 6, and

Figs. 6 and 7 show in longitudinal section and in plan View respectively the nished shape of the sleeper, with inclined rail seaxts producedr by pressing or drop forging. Fig. 8 shows a cross section Yon the Aline VIII-VIII in Figure 9, through a rolled bary with rough rolled'thickenings at the rail seats, and

Fig. 9 shows a longitudinal section of the rolled bar;

Fig. 10 shows a cross in Figure 11', and Y Fig. 11y shows a longitudinal'section through about half a sleeper, after the pressing of the rail support but before the upsetting of the railguiding ribs, and sections through the pressing and upsetting implements;

Fig. V12 shows a cross section on the line XII-XLI Figure13, and

Fig. 13 shows a longitudinal section through about half a sleeper after the upsetting of the ribs, and also sections of the pressing and up'` setting tools;

section on the'line X-X Fig. Y14 shows a crossy section on thelineV XIV-XIV in Figure 15, and Y Fig. l5 shows a longitudinal section through about half a iinished sleeper, afterthe ribs have' received'their nal shape by after-pressing or the like., and also a section of the requisite'tool. Fig. 16 shows in plan viewa railway sleeper with rail guide ribs formed by drop forging the swells in a die,

Fig. 17 shows across section on the XVII in Fig. 16, and Fig. 18 shows a cross section on the line XVIII- XVIII in Fig. 16. v

, Fig. 19 is a cross. section through a Ysleeper on to be opened by drifting,

Fig. 20shows the same cross-section after the drifting operation, f y

Fig.. 2 1 is a vlongitudinal section through the sleeper' shown in Figs. 19. and 20 at. the rail seat, Fig. 22 is a perspective .view lof the drift employed, and

Fig. 23'isa alone inverted. y

Fig. 24y is a cross section, on the line XXIV- -4 XXIV Yin Fig.A 25,. of a sleeper with bridge-pieces' rolled 0n its under side,

Fig. 25 is a longitudinal-section ofthe sleeper showny in Fig. 24v at the rail seat, and

Fig. 26 shows a modified constructionalform of this sleeper in longitudinal sectionv'at the. rail seat.V

Figure27 shows part of a sleeper in longitudinal` section, with one guide rib in an unnished statev and the other nished. l

The long bar shownin Figures 1 and 2 has been longitudinally rolled to the approximate section of. e, railway tie. orsleepsrtwiih. laterally extendline XIX-XIX in Fig. 21, showing a recess ready;

perspective View showing the' die ing projections or swells a on the upper side. This bar is then cut up into lengths, each corresponding to one sleeper, these sleeper lengths are further rolled out in grooved rolls to a form such as that shown in Figures 3 and 4.` When suitable grooves are provided part of the swell that is to form the rail seat can be cogged down, pressed or drop forged with an inclination, as indicated by broken lines in the swells a in Fig. 4. In the middle of the longitudinal section is a thickening b, which serves to provide material for the purpose of making up differences in the gauge when the sleeper is being finish-pressed. The rolled ribs are then given their final shape, and the rail seats are given the required inclination, by pressing or drop forging in a die, and at the same time the ties are capped at their ends, thus producing the finished railway tie shown in Figures 5, 6 and 7, where h, h are the rail guides, and j, a' the rail seats. A

Figures 8 `to 15 illustrate'a method in which the thickenedportions a are partially shaped by an upsetting operation. i o According to Figures 8` and 9 the rolled profile of the sleeper receives at the rail support and in the neighbourhood thereof circumferential rough rolled reinforcements a. In the middle of the sleeper a swellb is again'provided, which, after the sleepers have shrunk upon cooling below the gauge, is pressed down to a greater or less extent.

From the rolled bars pieces of about the length of a sleeper are cut off, as illustratedin Fig. 9.-

The parts to be upset are thereupon warmed and then clamped between press tools i and ii, and

simultaneously or previously or subsequently the upsetting jaws d, d1 and e, e1 are mounted, as

shown in Figs. 10 and 11, and these are then moved in the direction of the arrows in Fig. 11 towards the press tools i, 111, until they reach the position shown in Figure 13,so that the swells f are formed. The swells f are then shaped to the desired ribs in a press tool g, g1, as shown in Figs. 14 and 15. YThe excess material of the swells may be utilized, by suitable recesses in the under portion of the press tool, for swell-like thickenings lc locatedunderneath the top of the sleeper.

In the press' tool illustrated in Figure 14 the recesses c may be pressed in simultaneously with the finish-pressing of the ribs. This not only considerably reduces the work of milling, but the material to be displaced by pressing assists in increasingthe height of the ribs. The increases in the cross section formed by cogging down are intended to remain, insofar as they are not upset, inorder that the sleeper shall vbe reinforced just at the rail seat so as to be capable of withstanding the stressesat these places.

By suitably constructing the press tool according to Figure 15 the capping (or adzing) and recessing of the sleepers may be effected simultaneously with the finish-pressing of the ribs. By this Arecessing or notching the sleeper receives on the rail seat the prescribed inclination for the rail.

' The sleeper shown in Figures 16, k1'7 and 18 is made from a rolled bar provided with swells. The rail guide ribs h are formed by drop forging the swells in' the die.

When the ribs are formed by drop forging in a die instead of being rolled from the cogged down swells, the material is not distributed, as is the case when rolling, in the longitudinal direction of the sleepers, but in the lateral parts of the cross section of the sleeper, more particularly the roof-shaped parts, as shown in Figure 1'1.V This has the advantage that the cross section of the sleeper will be reinforced just at the rail seat and in the vicinity thereof, so that the known detrimental springing apart of the cross section of the rail seat is prevented, or at least reduced.

The main advantage provided by drop forging the swells in a die is that those parts of the swells from which the ribs are formed will come to the top during forging, so that the cogged down swells need not be of the height which the forged ribs must have. It is thus possible for the swells of the rolled bars to be made lower, which considerably facilitates the rolling operation.

The swells mayA also be cogged down with or without grooves; in the latter case the grooves are formed when the swells are being drop forged in the die, in order to facilitate the milling out of the undercut recesses of the ribs.

By. drop forging the sleepers in the die, greater accuracy is obtained in the distance of the ribs from one another than by rolling. Any slight differences in gauge still remaining may be equalized by drawing down or upsetting the cross section of the sleeper, the latter being effected in either the hot orv the cold state; Y -The sleeper may also be widened'at therail seat over the whole cross-section by drop forging in the die, as shown in the right hand'part of Fig. 16 and in Fig. 20. By this means the hollow space in the sleeper is widened so as to be capable of receiving a greater amount of ballast. This widening at the rail seat gives the sleeper a greater resistance to wear due to the rail foot. This widening isof particular advantage when elastic intermediate plates are used between the rail foot and the top of the sleeper, as the elastic intermediate plates will have a longer life when the rail seat is wider and as the frictional resistance will ybe greater. Inthe case of railways using both'wood-and iron sleepers it is of particular advantage'to be able to adapt the widening of the rail seat surface ofthe iron sleepers to the width of the sole plate forwooden sleepers, so that vpoplar wood plates of the same width can bemade for both rail seats.v` 1

Figures 19v to 23 illustratethe opening of thev recess c in the rail guides by drifting.

itis

fit

Before drifting, the die m, shown upside down in Fig. V23, is placed between the guide ribs h, asv shown in Figure 2li The die m has a longitudinal groove q in its under side, into which the drift n is driven. The drift n, as shownin' Figure 22, comprises a core parto, the cross section of which corresponds to the original cross` section of the recess c, asshown in Figure 19,

and lateral projections p1, which correspond at the rear end tothe prole of the finished recess c shown in Figure 20, but taper away towards the forward end of the drift, terminating in sharp points beside the lower ,edges of the core piece o, preferablyat a certain distance frointhe forward end of the drift.'

The die may if desired consist of two or more parts; orv in place .of a single vdrift several drifts The recesses in the ribs of sole plates can of course be made in the same way. 1- f Producing the recesses by drifting is cheaper than milling, and makes the material denser, and also provides the possibility of the cogged down swells being made of less height, as thedrift forces the material of the undercut'placesupwards. The height of the cogged down swells need thus only be such that the correct height vsor j convenient and costly manner.

can be obtained by one passage of the material through the milled rolls.

In the case of the rail ties illustrated in Figures `24,- 25 and 26, in order that the material of the rolled swells a lying between the ribs shall not become too wide when being pressed down at the rail seat, the matrix is provided with one or two slots, into which the excess material is forced. The material provided by the rolled swells is thus utilized not only for forming the rail guide ribs h but also for forming transverse bridge-pieces or longitudinal ribs on the under side of the top of the rail tie. Figures 24 and 25 shown in full lines a transverse bridge s midway between the guiding ribs h., and in broken lines a longitudinal rib t in the middle of the tie. Figure 26 shows two transverse bridges u, spaced Wider apart than the rail guides h. In this case a swell 11 is preferably provided below the rail seat, to enable the ballast to distribute itself better and to force it together. The ribs u prevent the ballast escaping laterally under the working pressure. These bridge-like swells also have the advantage that the cross section of the sleeper is re-inforced just at the laces which are subjected to the greatest stresses. When the bridge extends at right angles to the cross-section of the sleeper it provides the further advantage of greater security against lateral displacement of the sleeper in the ballast.

Instead of forming bridges, the excess material may be forced downwards to form other projections between or behind the ribs. When the sleepers are laid on previously formed ballast boxing, such projections have a beneficial effect on the density of the ballast, this being of particular advantage underneath the rail seat.

Instead of the guide ribs being provided with recesses for the lateral insertion of the heads of the clip screws, they may be undercut longitudinally, wedges being inserted for gripping the rail foot, as shown in Fig. 27, where :r represents a left hand guide rib in the unfinished state, and y the right hand finished undercut guide rib, with the wedge a driven in. The undercut recesses in the guide ribs may be parallel or may be inclined to one another. n

It has already been proposed to fit rails with such wedges, Ybut in such cases the requisite undercuts of the guiding ribs are formed by punching out jaws from the top of the sleeper or by welding on supporting plates with rolled on guiding ribs. The former method of manufacturing has the disadvantage that the cross section of the sleeper is considerably weakened just at the most vital part, and the latter method has the disadvantage that several supportingplates must be made and that these have'to be welded or riveted to the sleepers in a known in- The two methods of fixing have in common the further disadvantage that they are liable to be damaged through the wedges being frequently hammered in.

According to the invention all these disadvantages are overcome by the solid ribs which are formed from the cogged up or upset swells being undercut for receiving the wedges by milling, driving in a flat drift, bending over or the like. As the ribs formed in this way extendright into the roof-shaped inclined parts of the sleeper section, the wedge surfaces are lengthened, so that the wedges will have a better grip.

What I claim is: 1. A method of manufacturing iron railway sleepers with guideribs for the rails, comprising first longitudinally rolling long iron bars to the approximate section of the sleeper with laterally extending projections or swells on the upper side, and thereupon forming the said swells into the guide ribs for the rails, as andl for'the purpose setforth.

l2. A method of manufacturing ironrailway sleepers with guide ribs for the rails, comprising rst longitudinally rolling Vlong iron bars to the approximate section of the sleeperwith laterally extending projections or swells on the upper side, and then by longitudinal rolling forming the'said swells into the guide ribs for the, rails, as and .for the purpose set forth.

3. A method of manufacturing iron railway sleepers with guide ribs for the rails, comprising first longitudinally rolling long iron bars to the approximate section of the sleeper with laterally for the purpose set forth.

4. A method of manufacturing iron railway sleepers with guide ribs for the rails, consisting in rolling a long bar longitudinally to the approximate section of the sleeper with laterally extending projections or swells on the upper side, cutting lengths from the said rolled bar and forming the said swells into the guide ribs by passing the said lengths longitudinally through rolls provided with suitable grooves, as and for the purpose set forth.

5. A method of manufacturing iron railway sleepers with guide ribs for the rails, consisting in rolling a long bar longitudinally to the approximate section of the sleeper with projections or swells on it, cutting lengths from the said rolled bar and forming the said swells into the guide ribs by passing the said lengths longitudinally through rolls, giving the rolled ribs their nal shape by pressing or drop forging in a die and at the same time capping the sleepers at their ends, as and for the purpose set forth.

6. A method of manufacturing iron railway sleepers with guide ribs for the rails, consisting in forming by longitudinally rolling a long iron bar to the approximate section of the sleeper with projections or swells on it, forming the said swellsinto the guide ribs for the rails and into the rail seat, and giving the rail seats the required inclination by pressing or drop forging in a die, as and for the purpose set forth.

7. A method of manufacturing viron railway sleepers with guide ribs for the rails, consisting in forming transverse thickened parts by upsetting the sleeper and in thereupon giving the said parts the required rib shape by pressing, as and for the purpose set forth.

8. A method as claimed in claim 7, and comprising the step of rolling the sleeper with reinforcements at the rail seat and in its vicinity for facilitating the upsetting operation, as and for the purpose set forth.

' 9. A method of manufacturing iron railway sleepers, consisting in forming swells in the material of the sleeper and forming the swells into rail .seats and guide ribs for the rails by drop forging the swells in dies, as and for the purpose set forth.

10. A method as claimed in claim 9 and comprising the step of widening the sleeper at and in the vicinity of the rail seat' by drop forging the swells in dies, as and for the purpose set forth.

11. A method of manufacturing iron railway sleepers, consisting in forming swells in the ma.- terial of the sleeper and by drop forging in dies Vforming theswells into rail seats and guide ribs and grooves in the ribs and milling out the grooves to form undercut recesses in the ribs, as and for the purpose set forth.

12. A method of producing undercut recesses for the heads of the clip bolts in Vthe'ribs of iron Vrailway slepers, consisting in forming grooves in swells-on the top part of the sleeper and vby pressing forming the saidr swells into guide ribs for the rails on the top surface of the sleeper and into swell or bridge-like reinforcements on the under side of the sleeper inthe vicinity of the rail seats, as and forthe purpose set forth.

14. A method of manufacturing iron railway sleepers with guide ribs for the rails, comprising forming swells in the material of the sleepers, converting the'swells into guide ribs by pressure and longitudinally undercutting recesses therein for the insertion of Wedges for xing the rail foot. J THEODOR BUCHHOLZ. Y

'iss y 

